It
is well authenticated that the Elder Thomas Cason of this church
was one of the first preachers of Madison County. Aside from that
fact, nothing is know about his efforts to establish a religious
organization. In July 1853 Rev. A. D. Kellison and wife organized
the First Christian Church at Winterset. Charter members included
John Brinson, Elizabeth Brinson, David Bishop, Peter Moore, Thomas
Moore, Thomas Dryden, and Eliza Dryden. A
substantial church building was erected in 1855 and met the requirements
of the organization until 1896, when it was torn down and a
commodious and modern church was erected. Mr. and Mrs. Kellison
preached for the church until 1858. Other early pastors were Rev.
A. Bradfield, Elders Storr and Bishop. In
1891 Rev. W. B. Golden was the pastor and he was followed by Rev.
Howard who remained several years. Under the efforts of the latter
the congregation was materially built up and it was largely
through his untiring efforts that the church building was erected. The
next pastor was Rev. L. E. Follansbee, who has since achieved
quite a reputation on the lecture platform. His successor was Rev.
E. E. Bennett who was followed by Rev. Grafton. The Church is now
(1915) without a pastor. Among
the prominent members in early times were the families of John
Rogers, William Compton, Doctor Phillbrick, David Bishop, John
Brinson, A. J. Adkinson and Mrs. Ogden. Referring
to the 1896 building, it was stated "Services continued there
until after 1915, when they were gradually discontinued and the
congregation disbanded. In 1925, the building was sold to Fred
Kale, and within a few years it was converted into an apartment
building"3. The
last mention of this church in the newspapers was in September
1921 when a pastor from Indianola came to preach a sermon. __________________
Source
1: The
History of Madison County, Iowa,
Union Historical Company, 1879, Des Moines, Iowa |
Source
2: History
of Madison County and its People, Volume 1, Herman Mueller,
The S. J. Clarke |
|
Publishing Company, 1915,
Chicago, Illinois |
Source 3: Pioneers
Brought Christian Faith to Frontier, The Winterset
Madisonian, 100th Anniversary |
|
Edition, Winterset, Iowa, July
18, 1956, Page 6 |
|